A top daily craft beer news website

Main menu

Brewers Association reveals 2010 Top 50 Breweries

Posted on April 13, 2011 at 3:47 pm by Adam Nason

(Boulder, CO) – The Brewers Association, the not-for-profit trade group that tabulates production statistics for U.S. breweries, released its annual lists reporting the top 50 brewing companies in the country, based on 2010 beer sales volume. The two lists are the Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies, comprising small and independent craft brewers,¹ and the Top 50 Overall Brewing Companies. Thirty-six of the top 50 brewing companies are small and independent craft brewing companies.

“At more than 1,700, the number of breweries in the U.S. is higher than any time since the late 1800s,” said Paul Gatza, director of the Brewers Association. “Beer lovers’ appreciation for American craft brewers and their craft beers continue to grow.”

Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies
(Based on 2010 beer sales volume)

Rank

Brewing Company

City

State

1

Boston Beer Co.

Boston

MA

2

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

Chico

CA

3

New Belgium Brewing Co.

Fort Collins

CO

4

Spoetzl Brewery*

Shiner

TX

5

Deschutes Brewery

Bend

OR

6

Independent Brewers United (IBU)*

Burlington

VT

7

Matt Brewing Co.

Utica

NY

8

Bell’s Brewery, Inc.

Galesburg

MI

9

Harpoon Brewery

Boston

MA

10

Boulevard Brewing Co.

Kansas City

MO

11

Dogfish Head Craft Brewery

Milton

DE

12

Alaskan Brewing and Bottling Co.

Juneau

AK

13

Long Trail Brewing Co.

Bridgewater Corners

VT

14

Stone Brewing Co.

Escondido

CA

15

Abita Brewing Co.

Abita Springs

LA

16

Brooklyn Brewery

Brooklyn

NY

17

Lagunitas Brewing Co.

Petaluma

CA

18

Full Sail Brewing Co.

Hood River

OR

19

Shipyard Brewing Co.

Portland

ME

20

Summit Brewing Co.

St. Paul

MN

21

New Glarus Brewing Co.

New Glarus

WI

22

Great Lakes Brewing Co.

Cleveland

OH

23

Anchor Brewing Co.

San Francisco

CA

24

Kona Brewery LLC*

Kailua-Kona

HI

25

Rogue Ales

Newport

OR

26

Firestone Walker Brewing Co.

Paso Robles

CA

27

Sweetwater Brewing Co.

Atlanta

GA

28

Flying Dog Brewery

Frederick

MD

29

Victory Brewing Co.

Downingtown

PA

30

Gordon Biersch Brewing Co.

San Jose

CA

31

BJ’s Chicago Pizza & Brewery, Inc.

Huntington Beach

CA

32

Stevens Point Brewery Co.

Stevens Point

WI

33

Odell Brewing Co.

Fort Collins

CO

34

BridgePort Brewing Co.*

Portland

OR

35

Rock Bottom Brewery Restaurants

Louisville

CO

36

Oskar Blues Brewery

Longmont

CO

37

Blue Point Brewing Co.

Patchogue

NY

38

Lost Coast Brewery and Cafe

Eureka

CA

39

Big Sky Brewing Co.

Missoula

MT

40

North Coast Brewing Co. Inc.

Fort Bragg

CA

41

Mac and Jack’s Brewery

Redmond

WA

42

The Saint Louis Brewery, Inc.

Maplewood

MO

43

Bear Republic Brewing Co.

Cloverdale

CA

44

Karl Strauss Brewing Co.

San Diego

CA

45

Breckenridge Brewery

Denver

CO

46

Utah Brewers Cooperative

Salt Lake City

UT

47

Gordon Biersch Brewery Restaurants

Chattanooga

TN

48

Saint Arnold Brewing Co.

Houston

TX

49

Real Ale Brewing Co.

Blanco

TX

50

Ninkasi Brewing Co.

Eugene

OR

*Top 50 Craft Brewing Companies notes: Spoetzl is part of Gambrinus Company; IBU January-August only prior to sale to North American Breweries (NAB); Kona January-September only prior to sale to Craft Brewers Alliance (CBA); BridgePort is part of Gambrinus Company.

Top 50 Brewing Companies
(Based on 2010 beer sales volume)

Rank

Brewing Company

City

State

1

Anheuser-Busch Inc.

St. Louis

MO

2

MillerCoors Brewing Co.

Chicago

IL

3

Pabst

Woodbridge

IL

4

D. G. Yuengling and Son Inc.

Pottsville

PA

5

Boston Beer Co.

Boston

MA

6

Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

Chico

CA

7

New Belgium Brewing Co.

Fort Collins

CO

8

North American Breweries*

Rochester

NY

9

Craft Brewers Alliance, Inc.*

Portland

OR

10

Spoetzl Brewery*

Shiner

TX

11

Deschutes Brewery

Bend

OR

12

Independent Brewers United (IBU)*

Burlington

VT

13

Matt Brewing Co.

Utica

NY

14

Minhas Craft Brewery

Monroe

WI

15

Bell’s Brewery, Inc.

Galesburg

MI

16

Harpoon Brewery

Boston

MA

17

Boulevard Brewing Co.

Kansas City

MO

18

Goose Island Beer Co.

Chicago

IL

19

Dogfish Head Craft Brewery

Milton

DE

20

Alaskan Brewing and Bottling Co.

Juneau

AK

21

Long Trail Brewing Co.

Bridgewater Corners

VT

22

August Schell Brewing Co.

New Ulm

MN

23

Stone Brewing Co.

Escondido

CA

24

Abita Brewing Co.

Abita Springs

LA

25

Brooklyn Brewery

Brooklyn

NY

26

Lagunitas Brewing Co.

Petaluma

CA

27

Full Sail Brewing Co.

Hood River

OR

28

Shipyard Brewing Co.

Portland

ME

29

Summit Brewing Co.

St Paul

MN

30

New Glarus Brewing Co.

New Glarus

WI

31

Great Lakes Brewing Co.

Cleveland

OH

32

Anchor Brewing Co.

San Francisco

CA

33

Iron City Brewing Co.

Pittsburgh

PA

34

Kona Brewery LLC*

Kailua-Kona

HI

35

Rogue Ales

Newport

OR

36

Firestone Walker Brewing Co.

Paso Robles

CA

37

Winery Exchange Inc. / World Brews

Novato

CA

38

Sweetwater Brewing Co.

Atlanta

GA

39

Mendocino Brewing Co.

Ukiah

CA

40

Flying Dog Brewery

Frederick

MD

41

Victory Brewing Co.

Downingtown

PA

42

Gordon Biersch Brewing Co.

San Jose

CA

43

BJ’s Chicago Pizza & Brewery, Inc.

Huntington Beach

CA

44

Stevens Point Brewery Co.

Stevens Point

WI

45

Odell Brewing Co.

Fort Collins

CO

46

BridgePort Brewing Co.*

Portland

OR

47

Cold Spring Brewing Co.

Cold Spring

MN

48

Rock Bottom Brewery

Louisville

CO

49

Oskar Blues Brewery

Longmont

CO

50

Straub Brewery

Saint Marys

PA

*Top 50 Brewing Companies notes: NAB includes IBU August-December; CBA includes Kona October-December; Spoetzl is part of Gambrinus Company; and IBU is January-August only (sale to NAB); Kona is January-September only (sale to CBA); BridgePort is part of Gambrinus Company. Flavored malt beverages are not considered beer for the Top 50 rankings.

The Association’s full 2010 industry analysis, which shows regional trends and sales by individual breweries, will be published in the May/June issue of The New Brewer, available May 18.

¹The definition of a craft brewer as stated by the Brewers Association: An American craft brewer is small, independent, and traditional. Small: Annual production of beer less than 6 million barrels. Beer production is attributed to a brewer according to the rules of alternating proprietorships. Flavored malt beverages are not considered beer for purposes of this definition. Independent: Less than 25% of the craft brewery is owned or controlled (or equivalent economic interest) by an alcoholic beverage industry member who is not themselves a craft brewer. Traditional: A brewer who has either an all malt flagship (the beer which represents the greatest volume among that brewer’s brands) or has at least 50% of its volume in either all malt beers or in beers which use adjuncts to enhance rather than lighten flavor.